The South Okanagan Rehab Centre for Owls is sad to report that the Spotted owl that came into care 2 weeks ago has now succumbed to it's weakened state of health.

The bird has been in quarantine since it was picked up off the road in Manning Park by a work crew on their way back home to Hedley, BC. As soon as they arrived in Hedley they contacted the Conservation hotline who directed them to SORCO.

The news of the bird gained national attention as there are only 3 known nesting pairs of these rare birds in all of Canada.

SORCO volunteers worked hard to give this highly endangered specie the best of care with the modest amenities that we have at hand. We thank Dr. Steve Harvey of Penticton for his care and attention to the owl as well.

As predicted, the first two weeks are the critical zone in which a bird either makes it or dies.

Often when birds are in the extremely advanced stage of starvation as this bird was, there is little that can be done to save them. Often major organs have already begun to shut down or are not working well enough for the bird to recover. So although the bird was eating, it's system just was too weak to recover.

This is a great loss indeed and it has left us wondering if there was something we could have done better.

Even transporting a bird in this weakened state can put undue stress upon it.

On Monday, I contacted head Veterinarian Helen Schwantje in Victoria and suggested that perhaps the rare owl should be moved to facilities that might be able to give it more advanced care as it remained in a weakened state and was not gaining weight. The owl was eating on it's own at times and being force fed at other times. It never did regain the strength to stand on its own.

It died about 5:00 am this morning.

Sherri Klein - Founder and Office Manager for The South Okanagan Rehabilitation for Owls